The Lord’s supply
This week we are going to start a new feature on LTC. We wanted to start having interviews with our bloggers, get their minds and personal viewpoints on the different aspects of the Family’s credo and what it means to each one personally. We would cover different topics as we go along, and we wanted to start off with a fairly important aspect of the life of Faith: The Lord’s supply for our needs.
The other day someone asked my wife, “so, I hear you’re a missionary. What is that? What does it mean? How do you live? How do you support yourself and feed and clothe your children?” She fired off question after question, but not really in a polite and receptive way, and Linda was a little taken aback. “Does your church support you?”
“No, we raise our own support,” Linda replied. “in whatever country we’re in at the time we preach the gospel and strive to live Mark 16:15*, and we support ourselves through donations and fundraisers…”
(*Mark 16:15 – And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.)
“Fundraisers?” she said, cutting Linda off. “So in effect what you’re saying is that you’re beggars. Because, when I hear the word ‘fundraiser’ I think ‘beggar.’”
Linda listed a few more ways that we as Family members support ourselves, but she did find herself a little flustered by this older lady who clearly did not think our efforts were worthy of any sort of positive reaction and seemed to regard the the life of faith with some distaste. After she told me the story it got me thinking again about the Family lifestyle and the way we live. When it comes to the kind of work we do and the services that we offer to help humankind all over the world, the words of Paul the Apostle come to mind:
1st Corinthians 9:11 – If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things?
The fact is, each and every Family member is living and working to help others in whatever country they’re in at the time. It is a full-time and often thankless job, and as you can read daily in the news, there are more far more people in the world who need help than there are to help them. It is clear in God’s Word that it is His plan for those who serve Him full-time be supported fully by Him, through whatever means or through whichever person God inspires to give. Not to mention the fact that “raising funds” or fundraisers exist in every sphere of life, from presidential candidates to the arts, universities to humanitarian missions. All of these rely heavily on “fundraisers” to reach their goals or fulfill their mission statements.
To get back to that story; thankfully someone else, a friend who had overheard my wife’s conversation with this woman was genuinely curious and came later to find out more:
“You work a steady job, right?” my wife asked. “You come into work, put in your hours, and in return you expect your boss to give you a paycheck, right? Well, serving the Lord is exactly like that. Sure, the hours are more flexible (and usually longer or outside the regular ’9-to-5′ timeslots) but when you serve God and give Him all of your time, He’s promised in His word that He will provide for you… take care of you!”
It can be daunting sometimes, and the life of faith is exactly that—living by faith. You have to have the faith and trust that God will keep His promises. Promises like:
Psalm 34:10 – The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.
Philippians 4:19 – My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 9:14 – Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel.
Matthew 6:25-26 – Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
These are just a few of the many verses in the Bible where God promises that He will take care of those who serve Him fulltime. It’s a part of our creed, and what we strive to live everyday. Enjoy the interviews, and if you aren’t serving the Lord in a fulltime capacity at this time, consider supporting someone who is in your area. Your life will be blessed as a result, and you’ll be doing your part to make the world a better place. It’s up to all of us to do what we can, when we can.
Thanks for reading,
–Justin and Mike (the Editors)